As someone who has followed the career of R. Kelly since he wore a flattop and was with Public Announcement, I was excited to venture to Foxwoods Resorts Casino to see the opening night of a three-night run by the self-proclaimed “R&B Thug.” But with a massive collection of hits spanning more than two decades, what set list could you expect? When it came to performing songs from the beginning of his career to now, Kelly didn’t disappoint.
Kelly performed songs like “Slow Dance” when he was with the aforementioned Public Announcement and also performed several hits from his debut solo album, 12 Play, including the title song, “Your Body’s Callin’” and “It Seems Like You’re Ready,” among others.
The legendary singer asked a bunch of questions pertaining to his music, starting with ‘how many of you have made love to my music?’ He finished the questions by asking ‘How many of y’all made babies to my music?’ By the sound of the response from the crowd, there were hundreds of babies conceived while listening to R. Kelly.
Kelly also performed hits like “You Remind Me of Something” and “Down Low” off his self-titled third album, as well as “Feelin’ on Yo Booty” and “R&B Thug,” among others, from the TP-2.com album. A fan of R. Kelly remixes? He made sure he performed a few of his more popular ones, including “Fiesta” (sans Jay Z) “Down Low” and “Bump N’ Grind.”
For the younger fans or fans of his newer music, he also performed “Cookie,” a song that may change the way that you think about an Oreo, and “My Story,” his collaboration with hip-hop artist 2Chainz, from Black Panties, his most recent release. “How many of y’all have on black panties?” the singer asked the women in the audience before saying “thank you for respecting the concept.”
Two disappointments about the concert? If you are a fan of the Chicago native’s non-sexual, more emotional songs, like “I Believe I Can Fly,” “I’m Your Angel” or “Sadie,” his remake dedicated to his mother, you will not find it during his 75-minute set. Also, the crowd was left wanting more R. Kelly. But that’s a good thing, and when you have dozens of hits going back to 1993, Kelly could have performed for over two hours, and the crowd would’ve still wanted more, and that is a great thing.
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